elephant exhibit panorama

July 6, 2013.

A composite of 13 vertical images. Not so much because I wanted a big panorama but more because I was too lazy to take off my camera backpack and switch lenses from a telephoto zoom to a wide angle zoom.

The far right, barely visible in this photo, is the original small elephant yard which has a separate viewing platform. This left area where I am standing is a new larger viewing platform that shows the expansion. There is a very large pool in front and then cable and post barriers with several even larger yards behind. Unfortunately, there is no good viewing for these larger yards and as you can see the only elephants out at this time (a busy saturday btw) were all in the far yards. However, there was another group of three (including one youngster) in the old yard on the far right that were easily visible from the other platform.

If you walk all the way around the exhibit on the right (to the Asia train station) you get another view of the back yards, but this view is also from a distance. The thing is, the area between the train station and the elephant exhibit is just open ground and it would take very little work to extend a path for closer viewing. Why they do not do so is completely baffling.

The Asian Elephant expansion took place in the past few years and Rio Grande now has one of the more peculiar elephant enclosures that I've ever seen. It is several acres in size and has a vast pool near the main visitor viewing platform, but on my visit in 2010 the elephants were also all in the background and barely discernible. What is the point in that? It is difficult to figure out where all of the side yards begin and end, and even with 6 elephants it can be frustrating attempting to actually see them clearly.

@snowleopard at the time of your visit elephants could not be seen in the pool yard because they had a female calf born in August the year before, and the zoo did not wish to risk an accident. The zoo is once again preparing for the birth of another female calf, and the fact that they are not displayed in the pool yard is probably precautionary. Although I do not know why the bulls are not displayed in the area when the female group is in the side yards. Hmm, with several yards of considerable acreage I do consider it one of the premier elephant habitats in the U.S... more so for the elephants than the visitors.

Exactly.......

This exhibit only has just over 2 acres of outdoor space just FYI. Despite them falsely advertising 5.5.

@DelacoursLangur Just commenting to confirm your claim. I measured 2.57 acres, excluding the indoor space.